WASHINGTON, D.C. – In response to the Obama Administration’s announcement that they would immediately stop defending portions of the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), Congressman Howard P. “Buck” McKeon (R-CA) joined Republican leadership and colleagues in signing H.Con.Res. 25 by Rep. Vicky Hartzler (R-MO) to protect the law and raise points about such a motion being made outside of the court system:

“I have serious concerns about the Administration arbitrarily overreaching and unilaterally determining the constitutionality of legislation, a move that should be left for the courts to decide. The Defense of Marriage Act was passed by Congress in 1996 with bipartisan support and was signed into law by President Bill Clinton. It has been official law for 14 years. That’s why I signed onto a resolution this week to reverse the Administration’s unruly decision not to defend DOMA. The Justice Department has a responsibility to defend the laws passed by Congress regardless of the personal and political views of the President or the Attorney General.

“Speaker John Boehner has put a Bipartisan Legal Advisory Group in place to help the House defend this law that passed the House and was signed into law through the appropriate legislative process. It’s critical that actions taken by all branches of the federal government are done so in a manner consistent with the Constitution of the United States.”

NOTE:

Nearly 40 states have enacted state-level DOMAs, and 31 have embraced traditional marriage in their state constitutions.

Excerpt from H. Con. Res. 25:

“Now, therefore, be it Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate concurring), That the Congress—

(1) condemns the Obama administration’s direction that the Department of Justice should discontinue defending the Defense of Marriage Act; and

(2) demands that the Department of Justice continue to defend the Defense of Marriage Act in all instances.”